Jessica Szohr's Half-Up Fishtail Will Give You Major Braid Envy

Celebrity hairstylist Sarah Potempa is on a mission to take over the world—one gorgeous braided hairstyle at a time. This week marks the middle of Potempa's #365daysofbraids Instagram challenge, and judging by the looks of this cool half-up fishtail style she recently created for Jessica Szohr, she has absolutely no plans on slowing down (or running out of amazing inspo).

At first glance, this awesome faux hawk hairstyle, nay artwork, seems like it could only be created by a true hair wizard, but after chatting with Potempa, it turns out anyone with a little bit of braid know-how can recreate the warm-weather look.

"Start by pulling your hair half up and separating it into three horizontal sections. Keep them divided by using large hair clamps like the Sarah Potempa Darby Clip($16) so you don't create any indentations," says Potempa. "Then, prep your hair with Aussie Total Miracle 7N1 Dry Shampoo ($5.99)—it not only gives any hair type this unbelievably cool texture, but it gives it the necessary grip it needs for a braid to stay put all day long"

"At the back of the crown, create two knotty braids with the bottom section—don't worry about it being too perfect! Knots and flyaways add to the cool factor. Intertwine it with two small three-strand braids from the middle section and pin all the braids around each other to create the faux hawk look," she says. "On the top of your head, pull the third section that's closest to your hairline into a ponytail and secure it with a clear elastic. Create a fishtail braid and wrap it in the Sarah Potempa Half Up Bun Maker ($4.99) to create the top knot."

All that's left is to quickly run a curling iron through the rest of your hair to throw in a few beachy waves, and spritz it with sea salt spray to enhance the texture. We particularly love how this half-up style solves the summer conundrum of getting shorter layers out of your face, yet still allows you to keep most of it down and wonderfully flowy. Potempa, we bow down at your braid genius.